A PENSIONER has lost a court bid to contest the will of his twin brother who left everything to a gay lover he met in the army.

Harry Marks, 72, of West Street, Southport claimed Private Stephen Smith had either forged the will or taken advantage of his brother.

Mr Smith met Sgt Peter Marks in Germany in 1977. They began a relationship that would last for more than 20 years and resulted in Mr Smith being drummed out of the service.

Sgt Marks's career continued and he served with distinction, retiring after the Falklands war.

Mr Smith, of Clapham, London, told high court judge Mr Justice Lawrence Collins that after a 1980 court martial Mr Marks told him he would never forget what had happened.

Mr Smith said the couple signed "mirror wills" at a dinner party in August 1988, leaving everything to each other, and when Mr Marks, who lived in West Nor-wood, London, died in May 2001 he became entitled to his six-figure estate.

But Mr Marks's twin brother Harry argued Mr Smith had concocted the story and had "forged" the will. He said that even if that wasn't the case, Mr Smith had taken advantage of his brother's weakness for drink to get him to sign the will.

After listening to half a day of legal argument, Mr Justice Collins said there was no evidence to support Mr Marks' claims, and dismissed his case.

Concluding that Mr Smith left court "without a stain on his name", the judge added that evidence from a hand-writing expert supported his contention that the will was made by the late Mr Marks in 1988.

Earlier, Mr Marks, who was accompanied by his wife Carol, had told the judge his "wonder-ful" brother was "a borderline alcoholic or alcoholic" who was "close to his family" .

But Adrian Jack, for Mr Smith, said although the late Mr Marks suffered declining health due to a drink problem from 1993, in 1988 he was "a man of good health".